The Development of a Biracial Identity

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The Development of a Biracial Identity Loyola University Chicago Loyola eCommons Master's Theses Theses and Dissertations 1992 Black, White, Or "Other"? the Development of a Biracial Identity Janet Kerf-Wellington Loyola University Chicago Follow this and additional works at: https://ecommons.luc.edu/luc_theses Part of the Education Commons Recommended Citation Kerf-Wellington, Janet, "Black, White, Or "Other"? the Development of a Biracial Identity" (1992). Master's Theses. 3932. https://ecommons.luc.edu/luc_theses/3932 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses and Dissertations at Loyola eCommons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Master's Theses by an authorized administrator of Loyola eCommons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License. Copyright © 1992 Janet Kerf-Wellington BLACK, WHITE, OR "OTHER"? THE DEVELOPMENT OF A BIRACIAL IDENTITY by Janet Kerf-Wellington A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of Loyola University of Chicago in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts September 1992 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The author extends her appreciation to the members of the advising committee, Professors Martha Ellen Wynne and Scott Solberg, for their guidance in the development and completion of this thesis. The author is especially grateful for the support and encouragement shown by her fiance, Gonzalo Ascarrunz, in addition to her friend and typist, Laura Tino. ii VITA The author, Janet Kerf-Wellington, is the daughter of Tom and Helen Kerf, of Lake Bluff, Illinois. She was born on May 16, 1963. She attended Northern Illinois University from 1981 to 1985. She graduated Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Science in Biology. In 1986, she entered Loyola University of Chicago in the School of Counseling and Educational Psychology. Professionally, she has been engaged in the social service field, and is presently a developer of programs providing outreach to adolescent females. She will soon reside in Bolivia, South America, to resume her interest in cross-cultural counseling and related issues. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ..................................... ii VITA ................................................. iii LIST OF TABLES . vi Chapter I. INTRODUCTION 1 II. THE APPLICATION OF RACIAL IDENTITY MODELS TO THE BIRACIAL POPULATION . • . 13 Identity . 14 Identity Development ................... 15 Racial Identity ............................. 16 Racial Identity and Group Dynamics ..... 16 Components of Racial Identity .......... 18 Racial Identity Development ............ 21 Racial Identity Development Models .......... 23 Stonequist's (1937) Marginal Persons Mode 1 • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 2 3 Cross' (1971) Negro-to-Black Conversion Model . 28 The Morten and Atkinson (1983) Minority Identity Development Model .......... 33 Shortcomings of Related Models .............. 38 III. POSTON'S BIRACIAL IDENTITY DEVELOPMENT MODEL 41 Personal Identity and Reference Group Orientation . 42 iv PI and RGO Studies ..................... 45 Relationship Between PI and RGO ............. 48 Studies on PI/RGO Relationship ......... 49 Parham and Helms' (1985) study ......... 51 Poston's (1990) Biracial Identity Development Model . 54 IV. SUMMARY AND DISCUSSION ........................ 61 Conclusions . 61 Implications for Counselors and Parents of Biracial Children ........................ 67 Suggestions for Future Research Endeavors .. 71 REFERENCES . 7 3 v LIST OF TABLES Table Page 1. The Life Cycle of the Marginal Man - Stonequist Model . 25 2. The Negro-to-Black Conversion Experience - Cross Model . • . • . 30 3. Minority Identity Development Model - Morten and Atkinson ............................ 35 4. Biracial Identity Development Model - Poston ..... 55 vi CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION overview "Nothing marks a man's group identity more visibly or more permanently than the color of his skin or his physical characteristics. Men have used these primary symbols of what they call 'race' as a basis for their self-esteem or lack of it." (Isaacs, Color and Race) Although these words were written over twenty years ago, at a time when race relations in the United States were constantly being tested both socially and politically, there remains a sad truth in the statement. Race, skin color, and ethnicity continue to play a major role in how society defines individuals, and how individuals define themselves. Racial identity is only one dimension of an individual's over-all identity or self-concept. However, it is a crucial dimension for minority individuals who must develop a "sense of self" in the context of a majority culture. As Eric Erikson states, "The term 'identity' .Points to an individual's link with the unique history of his people and also relates to the cornerstone of the individual's unique development." (1969, p. 102) In essence, one's affiliation with and attitudes toward his or her ethnic group are key factors in the development of that individual's identity. 2 Racial identity research established itself as a significant field of inquiry in the early 1970s. Its importance lies in the fact that identity development in minority individuals is influenced, to some degree or another, by the racial or cultural group in which one is a member. The field has evolved in the last twenty years from deficit model studies focusing on pathology and biased majority culture norms to a more psychosocial, less biased research perspective based on a better understanding of the complex dynamics involved in racial identity development. Racial identity development models help define the process of establishing a coherent racial identity by looking at how minority individuals shape their attitudes regarding themselves, the racial group to which they belong, other minority groups, and the majority culture. Racial identity development is most often viewed from a stage theory perspective, in that it is constantly progressing through a number of discrete stages as one grows and matures. These transitory stages one passes through are identified by changes in attitude and are contingent upon the cognitive maturity of the individual. Racial identity development is also psychosocial, "embedded in the context of the continuing psychosocial development of the individual" (Rosenthal, 1967, p.158). Hence, it is affected by the interplay between both psychological.and 3 sociological constructs. Developmental racial identity models are important theoretical tools because they highlight the differences between members of any one racial minority group and dispel the myth that all individuals from any one racial minority group are the same, holding similar attitudes and beliefs (Poston, 1990). Those models designed specifically for a particular racial or cultural group are an important recent advance because they recognize both within group and between group differences within the minority population as a whole. This review of the literature will focus specifically on racial identity development in the biracial population, comprised of individuals of black and white parentage. As a group, this population has grown tremendously in the last decade. Based upon present trends, and the increase in social interaction between members of different races and cultures, one can predict that the biracial population will continue to increase. The earlier literature on biracial issues is scant at best. Up until the early 1970's, there was very limited research on the topic, despite the steady increase in the number of biracial marriages. One possible explanation for this lack of research, beyond the illegal status of biracial marriages prior to 1967, was society's attitude toward individuals who married outside of their racial 4 group and the offspring of those marriages. The issues were often considered too controversial and/or unacceptable to attract research efforts. Hence, many of the studies focus solely on the incidence of interracial marriages in various parts of the country, and only lightly touch upon issues concerning the offspring of such marriages (Reuter, 1931), (Monahan, 1971), (Porterfield, 1978), (McDowell, 1981). This population has also been largely ignored in the field of identity research, due in part to a lack of recognition of the group as a distinct, unique minority population. It has been customary in our society to classify biracial individuals as "black" unless their physical appearance was light enough for them to abandon their black heritage and "pass" into the majority culture. In effect, society has forced these individuals into one racial group or another. The option of identifying with both racial groups, especially two groups so disparate historically, has not been sanctioned. The result is a slowly expanding population of individuals who may find difficulty establishing a coherent racial identity that deals specifically with their attitudes, values, awareness and beliefs about being biracial. The concept of the "marginal man", coined in 1928 by Robert Park, and elaborated upon by Everett Stonequist 5 (1937), is one of the earliest research attempts to understand the problems that may arise when an individual is a member of two conflictual groups. Park theorized that only those individuals able to deny membership in one of the two groups could develop a stable identity, and this was a small perc~~t(igeof the_ population. The majority of persons lived out
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